Cheech spins wheels in `Born in East L.A.'

Rudy Cheech Marin Javier Paul Rodriguez Jimmy Daniel Stern Dolores Kamala Lopez McCalister Jan Michael Vincent Rudy's mother Lupe Ontiveros Rudy's sister Urbanie Lucero Clear Type Productions presents a film written and directed byCheech Marin. Produced by Peter MacGregor-Scott. Photographed byAlex Phillips. Edited by Don Brochu. Music by Lee Holdridge.Running time: 85 minutes. Rated R.

Cheech without Chong is like the sound of one hand clapping, orone comic yapping. And one hand is about all you'll need to applaudCheech Marin's debut as writer-director-star of "Born in East L.A."Cheech, however, could have used a few more manos.

"Born in East L.A." is his first solo project after breaking upwith his longtime comedy partner, Tommy Chong, more than a year ago.The movie, which opened Friday at local theaters, is a spin-off oftheir two-year-old parody of Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the U.S.A."Marin based that record and video on the experience of a HispanicAmerican who was seized and deported in 1985.

He plays Rudy Robles, an American Hispanic auto mechanic in EastL. A. who gets a one-way ticket South o' the Border courtesy of theU.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service. Once in Tijuana, hestruggles to find a way back. Because this is Cheech, there has tobe comedy.

Perhaps the best gag involves his bewildered Mexican cousinJavier, (Paul Rodriguez), who arrives at Rudy's house speaking noEnglish and hears the voice of Jesus, which comes from a telephonebehind the diety's picture.

The biggest problem of the movie is tone. Part of the reasonmay be because this film was shot only last March and hurried intotheaters, influenced no doubt by the success of "La Bamba," a moviesome claim has changed Hollywood's approach to Hispanics. But where"La Bamba" attempted to show Hispanic life and the pursuit of theAmerican, old cheecharon seems to want to make a statement about whatit means to be a minority citizen of U.S. while still employing allhis satiric exaggerations of Hispanics.

Rudy spends much of the opening of the film ogling a statuesqueredhead. He shadows her in a pink Volkswagen and shouts juvenileremarks like, "Do you give fries with those shakes?" It serves nopurpose other than a few cheap laughs. Later, he gives someOrientals lessons on how to walk cool and impersonate East L. A.chicanos.

The sad thing is that once in Mexico, and his Cheech-isms winddown, he constructs an appealing portrait of a desperate man withouta country. Speaking little Spanish, he must cope with Jimmy (DanielStern), an opportunistic outcast American and assorted thugs. Thereare some sweet scenes in which deflated Rudy shows a common humanityto less fortunate refugees. Gradually, he melts Salvadoran refugeeDolores (Kamala Lopez) who finds him appealing despite someAmericanisms.

This film shows a bit of what a Cheech might feel aboutimmigration, but answers no questions. Not even, how good Cheech isalone.